Page 14 of King of Fire and Flames

I would never admit the mortifying truth.

“About how thrilled I am to be alive,” I said, pulling a black and red tunic over my head. I fastened my belt around it, and then stuffed my stockinged feet into boots.

Esen dangled the dreaded wrist cuffs between us. I held my hands out, and she fastened them quickly. “You’re fortunate Azarn decided not to begin the entertainments last night. A good night’s rest puts you at an advantage.”

“Who said I had a good night’s sleep?” I blushed, remembering this morning’s dream.

Fucking Arrow. I hated him. So why would my self-sabotaging mind torment me with a dream about him doing such deliciously dreadful things to me?

“I’m surprised the Fire King is letting me visit the stables.”

“I told him if you saw Luna, you’d likely fight harder and that if you had nothing to live for, you might give up and ruin Azarn’s fun.”

“Thank you, Esen. I appreciate that.” Studying the blue-haired fae, I stretched my back, working out the kinks. “And even if you’re planning to shove me off a cliff today and tell everyone I fell while trying to escape, it will certainly be nice to get some fresh air first.”

She snorted. “The Taln air isn’t very fresh.”

I thought about the smoky, sulfur-tinged breeze that whipped through my window and silently agreed with her.

We left the tower room and began our descent. Halfway down the stairs, Esen cleared her throat. “You said some nice things to me yesterday, so I’m returning the kindness. But don’t get any ideas about escaping. You’re chained, your reaver cloak is blocked throughout the city, and I have fire magic. I’d burn you to ash before you took two steps away.”

“At the moment, all I care about is Luna’s welfare. Let’s hurry before Azarn changes his mind.” I gripped Esen’s forearm and tugged her down the stairs, wondering if anyone had ever been nice to her before.

“Slow down a little,” she said as I bounced off the last step into a small foyer lined with black and silver tiles.

“Sorry. I’m excited.”

Taln Palace, or at least the areas I’d seen so far, was mostly dimly lit with few windows, and smoke from fire braziers and incense constantly watered my eyes.

Esen led me along confusing hallways that seemed to shift and change direction of their own accord, past fae wearing servants’ uniforms of black tunics and white aprons, before finally stopping at a random corner and opening a narrow door tucked into a stone recess.

We stepped out into a still-dark morning, the scent of charred wood and the sulfurous tang of minerals teasing my nose. I sneezed, and Esen laughed.

“You’ll soon adjust to the city’s smells,” she said.

“I hope not.”

Restricted by the chain, I stretched my arms above my head as best as I could, releasing my tight shoulder muscles.

To the east, black cliffs dropped into a windswept sea, the distant rhythmic crash of the waves against the rocks matching the wild beat of my heart.

A warm wind blew wisps of smoke around us as we picked our way down the hillside on a winding, stony path toward a flat area of dark earth and scraggly trees.

Unlike the vibrant greens and rich browns of Mydorian and Coridon’s golden streets and terracotta roof tiles, Taln’s landscape was a dull palette of black and gray, broken only by showers of red sparks from the fire geysers.

Their radiant glow bathed the land in shades of orange and red. But when the geysers weren’t active, even Taln’s grass and trees looked depressing, leeched of nearly all color.

Jagged rocks, worn smooth by the harsh elements, jutted from the ground at intervals, their surfaces aglow as if burning from within. Several times, I tripped, and Esen tugged on my chain, stopping me from falling on my face.

As we trekked through a tunnel of dark trees with gnarled, overhanging branches, the heat grew unbearable, sweat slicking my skin.

I wiped the back of my arm across my forehead. “The fae in Taln must bathe a lot. It’s so damn hot.”

“Only in the areas not regulated by magic. As I said, you’ll get used to it. Your body will acclimatize in a week or two, then you’ll be wearing cloaks everywhere like the rest of us.”

“I’d like to think I won’t be here long enough for that.”

Esen laughed. “Not looking forward to becoming the Princess of Fire?”

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